Truth of a Hero
by KJC2025
Summary: A chosen Hero is sent to a new world, to take on a new life after thousands of years of an endless war. However, the poor hero promptly gets himself sucked into another war, one with new rules, and new friends.
1. Chapter 1

Well, this is something new for me. This has been bouncing around in my head for a while, since I love crossovers, and the Zelda/Bleach section is far too small for my taste. So I thought that I'd contribute something to it.

The first part only bounces around a few of the Zelda stories, but all fifteen of them are in Link's background. I only put in references to a few of them because I've only played a few of them. In fact, I never played Skyward Sword, but I did just finish NintendoCapriSun's Let's Play of the game, which was really fun, even though I was accused of not having a life because I enjoy Let's Plays.

I don't own The Legend of Zelda or Bleach, which belong to Nintendo and Tite Kubo respectively.

* * *

(Skyward Sword)

Link stared at the blade in his hands. It hummed with a power that went beyond Fi's reaction to him.

_We need you, Hero. __**Will you help us? **__**We can help you if you do...**_

The voices were distinctly feminine and threefold, and seemed vaguely familiar. They sounded like nothing he had ever heard before, but they felt like Fi and like Zelda after she remembered her past as the goddess Hylia.

_Yes, Hero - we are the Great Three. __**Will you help us? **__**We require a Champion who will serve us...**_

The Golden Goddess wanted him to serve - them? He wasn't anything special - he couldn't have done anything without the help of others.

_It matters not, Hero.__** It only matters that you are the One that We would have serve Us. **__**Will you do so, Hero?**_

Who was he to dismiss the will of the Gods? If they wished for a Champion, he would serve them as best he could.

_Say it, Hero.__** Swear your devotion to Us. **__**It goes like this...**_ A force entered his mind, showing him words, which he repeated, for the gods he served.

"I, Link, forever swear to uphold the will of the Gods and to serve them for eternity. So I swear, so mote it be - if the gods would accept this servant." There was a flash of golden light, and three women stood before Link, dressed in similar outfits, though in different colors.

_We accept your oath, Hero, and offer you this in return.__** Forevermore shall We protect you in your efforts. **__**Fear not Hero, for you shall be Our Champion, and Shall never fade into Oblivion!**_

The women stood in a circle around him and clasped their hands together, which caused a light to form around them, which took the form of golden vines that swirled around the hands of the goddesses and then sank into Link's own skin, shining brightly. The mark of the Triforce shone brightly on the back of his hand, before the part of the mark that represented the Triforces of Power and Wisdom faded into his skin, becoming something of a regular birthmark, while the Triforce of Courage mark also faded, but became lighter in color. Link tilted his head as he looked down at his hand curiously, before looking back up at the goddesses.

_Do not fear, Hero.__** We must maintain a balance, and look after this realm that We created. **__**We need to hold the demon in check, and Our Fallen sister must be able to hold together this realm. **_

Oh. So, he was an agent of the gods? He could handle that. It seemed as though that was what he'd done to defeat Demise and Girahim - he'd acted in the stead of the gods, though he was acting for Hylia and not the old gods, but he'd used their power, and it seemed only fair that he serve them.

_Thank you Hero._ _**Worry not, for we shall aid you.**__** Even as you serve and aid Us.**_

And with that, the goddesses were gone. Link looked down at his hand, which faintly showed the mark of the old gods, and headed towards a dock that he could use to get back down to the Surface, which was to be called Hyrule, for the last time.

(Ocarina of Time)

Link stared at the Great Deku Tree, wondering when he was going to get to the point. It was an odd phenomena, but even the other servants of the gods didn't seem to know that he was so much older then he looked, which was odd in and of itself - his body changed to suit the will of the gods (mostly Farore, she seemed to favor him the most, and even spoke to him on occasion), and no one questioned it. He supposed that it would be strange if people knew his circumstances - they might become hostile. Human nature could be strange, sometimes.

The Great Deku Tree opened his mouth, and Link stepped inside, ready to start a new journey.

(Majora's Mask)

Link walked around Clock Town, marveling at all the wonders of this world, and the people who were so similar to the people he'd met in Hyrule. He wasn't sure what this Termina place had to do with Hyrule, but the connections to his past were everywhere, so surely this was some sort of alternate realm. And everyone seemed so miserable with the antics of the Skull Kid with the strange mask - what could he do but help?

(Twilight Princess)

Link liked Midna. She was bold, and was clearly using him, but that was okay. The mark of the Triforce didn't react negatively to her as it had to other people, so he rather thought that she would be a fine companion as he tried to stop the spread of Twilight across the world.

He wasn't surprised when she was revealed as the Princess of the Twilight Realm. She'd reminded him of the first Zelda he'd ever known. She also reminded him of Impa, who'd guided that Zelda. He wasn't sure who the people of Twilight were descended from - honestly, he rather thought that it could be any number of peoples - the gods had such a hand in this, it could have even been from that strange world Termina!

He would miss Midna. Few people were so amusingly blunt.

(Wind Waker)

The goddess Farore spoke to him in a dream, and said that he would be in a different world when he woke - that he would be in the world that Zelda had been in after she'd sent him back in time at the end of his place as the Hero of Time. That this world would be strange, but that she had faith in him. He had faith in her too. How could he not?

The new world was very strange indeed - everything was flooded, and he'd never spent so much time in a boat before. He was surprised that the boat was a King of Hyrule, but he'd learned to take such things in stride by now. He was saddened by the King's death, but he understood the need for rest - he didn't die, but he did have time in between most of his adventures. The King was not a chosen Hero, and so had no rest from his worries and stress. Of course he wished to follow the gods into eternity.

(Chamber of Sages)

_Hero, open your eyes.__** We must speak with you. **__**Rouse yourself, Hero!**_

Link opened his eyes at the command of the Great Goddesses. It was rare that they all spoke to him at once like this, generally preferring to speak one on one with him, and he mostly spoke with Farore. He bowed to the gods as they began to speak again.

_Our World no longer needs Us.__** We - and you - have protected them well. **__**But no longer will the spirit of Demise linger, nor will others harass this Realm.**_

The goddesses were standing in front of him, looking both stern and sad. Link wasn't sure that he totally understood what they were saying.

_What We are saying Hero, is that We - and you - are no longer needed.__** So We have decided to act for you. **__**Rise Hero, you have no need to bow to Us.**_

Link stood fully, and regarded the Great Three. What could they mean? Shifting his weight, he asked the question.

_There is something We must tell you. __**We have been testing you, Hero. **__**You have done well over these long years, Hero, and have earned this…**_

It started slowly - a glimmer of light from already shining gods - but then they became slightly transparent, and Link had to ask what was happening.

_You have served Us well, Hero, so We shall reward You.__** You shall be a part of Us, and we shall be part of You. **__**You have obtained the power to be a god, Chosen, and shall take up the mantle of such, even as We come to fade.**_

Wait. What?! They were...fading? Just what did that mean?! They were - dying?! NO. Surely not.

_Even so, Chosen. __** We have prepared a way for you to find a new world. But do **_**know that all worlds have gods, and You must treat them as s_uc_**_**h**._ _But do also remember that You too are a God now….__** You need not worship them as you have done for us. **__** Be careful, Chosen - but also live well. **__You have earned this rest.__** There is something else, Chosen. **__** Take this power, Chosen, and go through the Gate! **_

Din spread her arms forward, and three dark shapes moved from behind the trio to Link, circling him before surrounding his head as a helmet and then fading. Surely those were not the Fused Shadows? But the Gods were not done yet. Din kept her arms open, and the other two did likewise, and the far more familiar form of the Triforce stood in between him and them, before dissolving into light and circling the four of them. The goddesses also faded into the light and Link stood alone in a cloud of pure light that abruptly sank into his body, flooding him with a power that he was familiar with, but never to this degree.

And then the floor opened up, and he fell.

(Below Aokigahara Forest, in a cave)

Link landed in a large cavern, which was oddly well lit and which held a person in it. The person had long black hair that was slicked back and flat on his head, with unusual purple on black eyes.

"Welcome to Earth, Chosen of Hyrule. I am the Soul King."

* * *

Sorry about the cliffhanger. But not really. So Link has officially arrived on Earth, and has gone straight to the top in terms of the supernatural world.

Aokigahara Forest is a real place in Japan, also known as the Sea of Trees. It lies at the base of Mount Fuji, and is the second most popular place to commit suicide in the world, at a rate of upwards 100 bodies per year.

If you are struggling with depression, mental illness, or other difficult circumstances, please do not commit suicide. Remember that there are always options and help available. Seek help from medical professionals, from religious leaders, or from a suicide prevention hotline (in the US? The number is 1-800-273-8255)

Aokigahara is also relatively close to Tokyo, which is what Karakura Town is based on, as far as I can tell.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or the Legend of Zelda. I do, however, heavily use text from the Bleach manga in this chapter, though I don't plan doing that too often. We should be changing canon pretty quickly, so borrowing shouldn't be happening too much, or be too heavy.

Thank you for the response to this story. It's heartening to see that people are interested in my strange little brainchild.

This is an experiment for various writing styles as well as a story for your (and my) entertainment. There will be various techniques which will drop in and out of my writing, or something will show up once and never be used again. Sorry about that. It's not going to change.

And on a totally different note, thoughts on the US Government shutdown? It seems to me that anyone who would hold the government hostage for ideological purposes (Ted Cruz) is a horrible person who should not be allowed in the government. And anyone who allows it, even when there is an option to go around them (John Boehner) should ALSO not be allowed in the government, because it is the duty of elected officials to serve the people, and shutting down the government is NOT part of that duty. I urge anyone in the US who is eligible to vote to do so when possible, and to know who they are voting for. Know your candidates. Know their histories and platforms - and know their opponents as well. An informed public that votes is a public that can make their government hear them.

* * *

Kurosaki Ichigo stared at the three teenagers standing in front of him. They were cowering and shaking in front of him as he pointed first at one of the boys, and then at a broken vase.

"Question number one! What is that over there?!" The boys all looked at each other, and then the boy that he pointed at opened his mouth.

"Uh, an offering to the kid who died here earlier...?" The boy got a kick to the face for his troubles, which knocked him on his ass. Ichigo pointed at the second boy, who was looking at his downed friend.

"Second question! Why is the vase knocked over?" Ichigo pitched his voice to a lower, intimidating pitch, causing all three of the three to pale.

"'Cause we knocked it over when we were skateboarding?" The second boy also earned a kick to the face, and Ichigo stared at the three of them as they helped each other to their feet, and he was staring at all of them as he spoke, one more time.

"I see. So then, don't you think..._THAT YOU SHOULD APOLOGIZE TO HER?!_" The three of them stared at him as he flared the odd sense that allowed him to see ghosts, and the three boys suddenly saw a girl with blood dripping down the left side of her face and her hair in pigtails. The three of them started running away from the teenager and the dead girl, screaming that they were sorry, would never do it again, and that Ichigo 'really could see ghosts!'. Ichigo looked over at the dead girl and his scowl lessened, though it didn't fall off his face.

"Sorry I used you like that. I'll bring you some new flowers tomorrow. Will you be alright until then?" The little girl nodded, grinning at Ichigo.

"It's all right. I asked for your help anyway, so I don't mind." Ichigo waved at the girl as he headed home for the night.

"Hn. Just hurry up and go to heaven unless you want this to happen again. See you later." The dead girl stayed by the lamp-post as Ichigo headed home, dreading the reaction of his father when he got home. It was sure to be explosive.

* * *

Later that night, after dogging his father's 'You got home late!' attack, the 'Why don't you appreciate your sisters?' attack, and the 'You dropped your guard!' attack. Fortunately, even his father could shut up and sit still long enough for one of Yuzu's meals. So he managed to eat, but quickly had to barricade himself in his room shortly after the meal to escape his father's madness.

The locked door was actually a blessing in disguise, as Ichigo found out when someone stepped into his room through his wall. The figure was short, dressed in black - and was that a freaking sword?! What. The. Hell.

"It's close." Ichigo blinked at the girl - he could she was female by her voice, though she seemed so young. Too young to be involved in the sort of combat that a sword would imply. And you used a sword now anyway? When you could so easily be shot, why a sword?

_(Sweating, running, swinging his blade to bring down the enemy. Had to fight. Had to protect.)_

Ichigo stared at the girl. _What_ was near? It's not like he had any money in here._  
_

"What the hell are you talking about, moron!" The girl went flying and thunked into the floor. She quickly rolled over and sat up, rubbing the top of her ass, which would probably bruise from the way he'd kicked her.

"You can see me? You - You kicked me!" Great. He got a _slow_ thief in his house.

"Of course I can see you. And of course I kicked you - you're in my house!" The girl frowned at him, seeming confused, though it quickly became alarmed as Isshin launched himself up the stairs, yelling for Ichigo to keep the noise down. Ichigo opened the door to glare at his father, yelling that he had the right to yell at the crazy women in his room. Oddly enough though, his father didn't react at all to the women.

"Normal humans can't see me. I am a Shinigami." Ichigo stared at the women. This was such bullshit. A...shinigami? What on Earth was that? Surely not a real Death God? He didn't think they would be so...short.

"Alright then. Sorry about the noise dad. It's just a crazy dead chick." His father wailed about Ichigo being cruel by dangling his ability to see the dead over his 'poor, loving father'. Ichigo shut the door again and turned to look at the shinigami who was now sitting in his bedroom.

"Okay. If you're a shinigami, what are you doing in my bedroom? Is someone in my family due to die?! I won't let you hurt them!" The girl seemed upset at his ferocity, and grimaced slightly.

"It's not my duty to collect the souls of the living. The duty of a shinigami is to escort the souls of the dead to the afterlife and to purify the souls of the fallen dead. We usually do not bother the living."

_("No one would bother you - unless you'd like another adventure...?")_

"Well, you're certainly bothering with me now, aren't you?" The girl glared at him as he stood in front of her.

"You, human, are highly unusual in that you have a large amount of spiritual power." Ichigo raised an eyebrow towards the small shinigami, wondering what she was talking about.

"What is spiritual power? And do you still really need to be in my house?" The girl pulled a notebook and a pen out of - well, out of somewhere. Ichigo didn't want to think about it too much.

"All right. I'll explain everything to you. Shinigami, like me," here, she drew - a bunny? - in a black costume with a sword. "Are tasked with helping reluctant souls pass on to the afterlife. We are also tasked with purifying Hollows," a bunny with a strange looking mask a black hole in it's body, "which are monsters that eat souls." She went on to explain how the afterlife ('Soul Society') worked. Ichigo was paying attention to what she was saying, until a thought occurred to him.

"Hey, Shinigami? Weren't you _looking_ for something? You said it was 'near' when you came in through my wall. Were you looking for a hollow?" The shinigami girl furrowed her eyebrows and flushed, ever so slightly.

"Yes, I was. But a strange power is blocking my senses, and I can't feel it anymore. This particular hollow has been causing problems for shinigami in the area for a while now."

"Well then, shouldn't you be, I don't know, _hunting it,_ rather then sitting here with me and telling me stuff about the afterlife that I don't really want to know about until I'm, well, _dead_?" The end of his statement was punctuated by a crash downstairs, and then a high-pitched, feminine scream. _Karin._

_(Had to move faster, had to get to the kids, couldn't let them stay in the hands of the bulbins.)_

Ichigo and the shinigami both ran down the stairs to see a large, vaguely humanoid monster gripping his sister Yuzu. Karin was standing off to the side, staring at the monster.

Ichigo launched forward and flung himself at the monster, grabbing at a sturdy bit of wood and using it to beat at the the monster. It batted lightly at him, sending him flying into a bush and stunning him for a moment, though not stunning the little Shinigami. She pulled her sword out and attacked the - oh. It was a hollow, wasn't it?

She was clearly more maneuverable than the hollow, and managed several decent hits on the hollow. In the end though, the hollow's power was greater than the shinigami's, and she went flying into the side of a building, trailing an arc of blood behind her. Ichigo pulled himself out of the bush and gripped a piece of wood, preparing to go after the hollow again.

"Hey, human. Do you want to save your sisters?" Ichigo whipped his head around to stare at the little shinigami, who had pulled herself up into a sitting position.

"Of course I do!" What was he if he couldn't save his sisters? He'd failed his mother, but he still had his sisters, still had the will to protect - _(He wasn't sure that he fully understood what was going on, but that didn't matter, not if he could protect Hyrule. and it's people. __That was all that mattered.) _- everyone that he could.

"Then come here, and I will give you some of my power. It's risky, and it might not work, but it's the only option we have left." Sensing that she was right, that he was no match for the Hollow, Ichigo ran over to her, and waited for more instructions.

"All right. Grasp my sword and plunge it into your chest. I'll do the rest. Ready?" The little Shinigami had the oddest purple eyes. Strange, what he was noticing now that he might be about to die. He grabbed the hilt of the blade, over her hands and placed the tip of the blade just over his heart.

"I'm ready. By the way, Shinigami? My name is Kurosaki Ichigo." The little Shinigami smiled grimly at him, seeming to understand the point of introductions now, with a Hollow bearing down on them.

"I am Kuchiki Rukia." And with that, both Rukia and Ichigo forced the sword into Ichigo's chest, and Rukia laced her power into the blade, and the world faded into power.

* * *

And that's chapter two. I'm calling BS on all Bleach sizes, as they change, and are therefore not worth respecting. Sorry if that bothers you, but if it does, then the canon Bleach sizes should also bother you.

Okay. Next chapter, we meet new people, go to new places, and get new powers! See you soon - I hope.


End file.
